Massaged Kale Salad

Posted on December 2, 2012 by Not Crocker

This recipe was sent to me some time ago by our wonderful friend Evi. She always sending me delicious recipes and I finally got around to making this one! I am sure I’ve mentioned it before, but I love kale, so does Gen. So finding new ways to integrate it into our diet is always great! This salad is super simple. Really, it is 5 or so ingredients, and a few minutes of your time. I’ve actually come to the conclusion that this would be a wonderful way to start an even more complex salad, a great way to integrate the benefits of avocado for the Apple Dijon Kale Salad. Really, the possibilities are endless and this is both an awesome salad on its own and really snazzy jumping-off point for many delicious variations.

Massaged Kale Salad

Adapted from The Wannabe Chef.

INGREDIENTS

2 cups kale, roughly chopped
1 large avocado
juice of 1/2 lemon or lime
2 stalks of celery, diced
2 green onions, diced
1 medium tomato, diced (optional, we didn’t have any at the time, still turned out delicious)
pinch of cayenne pepper (optional)
1/4 tsp sea salt
pinch of black pepper

DIRECTIONS

In a large bowl, toss the kale with your lemon juice.
Cut the avocado up and plunk onto of kale.
Remove any finger jewelery… it’s about to get messy.
Massage the avocado into the kale for 5-8 minutes, until the kale is evenly coated in avocado and looking vibrantly green.
You are looking to essentially mash the avocado into the kale leaves.
Toss in your onions, celery, and tomato. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and cayenne (if using).
Serve alongside something hearty.

Pre-avocado rubdown!

The terrible final image of a very tasty salad.

Almond Parmesan Crusted Chicken Strips

Posted on November 29, 2012 by Not Crocker

I have lots of parmesan floating around in my fridge right now from the flax crackers I made last week. I didn’t feel like whipping up crackers but was hurting for some chicken strips. After cleaning out my coffee grinder, I went to work grinding up almonds and parmesan, and I was on the road! You can definitely use pre-ground almonds and kraft parmesan, but I was using the fresh deliciousness on hand. These are crunchy and satisfying and definitely higher on the health scale than the regular breaded version! They also cook up in a jiffy, making for an easy dinner on a busy night. Serve with salad, or braised brussels sprouts (at Gen’s desperate request).

Almond Parmesan Crusted Chicken Strips

INGREDIENTS

1.5 lbs chicken tenders (or 3 chicken breasts, sliced into strips)
1 cup blanched almonds, finely ground
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, ground
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp onion powder (optional)
salt and pepper to taste

2 eggs, whisked

DIRECTIONS

Heat oven to 350°F and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or aluminum foil.
Grind up your almonds and parmesan and toss them together in a bowl. Stir in the spices and whisk until well combined.
Whisk your eggs in a shallow bowl.
Dip each strip into the eggs and then toss in the almond mixture and set on a plate.
Let the strips rest in the coating for 5-10 minutes.
In a large pan heat some oil and cook the strips for 3 minutes each side.
Lay the strips on the prepared cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes, until cooked through.

Let the chicken strips rest in their coating for a few minutes.

Deviled Eggs light lunching

Posted on November 27, 2012 by Not Crocker

Looking for a quick lunch, I boiled up some eggs, mashed up the yolks with some of my favourites, and ate like a queen! These aren’t the most attractive version of this treat, I was just making it for myself. It is delicious though, and there are many variations of deviled eggs out there, try them all! Make them for lunch, breakfast, appetizers, whatever floats your boat.

Deviled Eggs

INGREDIENTS

1 dozen eggs, boiled and peeled (place eggs in a medium pot and cover with water. Bring them to a boil. Turn off the heat and let the eggs sit for 10-15 minutes. Peel, rinse and set aside)
2 tsp dijon mustard (I used habanero mustard this round)
1/4 cup mayonnaise (make your own!)
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp paprika
salt and pepper to taste
2 green onions, diced
1 stick of celery, finely diced

DIRECTIONS

Slice the eggs lengthwise, pop the yolks out and into a medium bowl. Lay the whites on a plate and set aside.
Add the remaining ingredients, except onions and celery, to the yolks and mash until well combined.
Stir the celery and onions into the yolk mixture.
Spoon the yolk mixture into the yolk holes in the whites. Feel free to sprinkle with a little paprika before munching down.

It’s not pretty, but it is tasty.

Excuses, Excuses!

Posted on November 23, 2012 by Not Crocker

Please find below my excuse for my posting absence:

Wait, is that a bookshelf… in the kitchen? Yes. Yes it is.

I took off half the books for ease of moving, didn’t help with ease of cooking.

We weren’t starting a new trend, we were getting our carpets cleaned and have very few places to store anything. Our kitchen took on the book shelf, our bedroom held the rest. But gosh darn our carpets are clean!

So that is my first excuse, and it’s a good one, but the carpets were cleaned last Saturday, only hindering me from baking and cooking until Monday, when they were dry enough to load back up with furniture. My second excuse came about as a bit of a surprize. Someone in our building has ants. We don’t but that doesn’t matter, we got a notice on Monday that our floor (along with 15 others) were being treated for ants. Okay, easy enough. No, they needed us to clear out our cupboards and drawers. Tah dah:

Utensils. (Auntie Janice, those knives are great!)

Everything packed up. Ugh, I am a transient.

Anyway, I do have posts for you wonderful folks, but I need a night to focus, finish reinstating my life, and relax. Sorry about the big pause, but now that I have a clean carpet and access to my kitchen, I will whip you all up something spectacular! (or just good.)

WARNING: MONSTER POST—Steamed Mussels three ways: Butter & Garlic, Curry, Spicy Coconut

Posted on November 18, 2012 by Not Crocker

My husband brought home a big box of live mussels on Thursday and I started planning the best way to cook them up this weekend. When I went to open them I noticed that their expiry date was the same day that Gen had bought them, two days before. Well, in an ignorant and hopeful moment, I opened the container and tested the mussels for liveliness. Unsuccessful. Time of confirmed death, 5:00pm. Gen immediately called Costco about the possibility of an exchange for mussels that haven’t already expired and they agreed! Problem: they close at 6:00pm. So, my wonderful husband who was desperate for some mussely goodness hustled his butt down to Costco, they took in our dead mussels and gave us a brand new batch and I went to work preparing them three ways! This was a delicious treat for us and we happily have some leftovers to munch on today (pluck the leftover mussels out of their shells, seal in a tupperware and eat cold, or just warmed the next day. They can get quite hard if you heat them too much the next day). The Butter & Garlic batch has a little kick from some apple cider vinegar, Gen went WILD for these, possibly because they were the first batch. He slurped back the sauce from his bowl, my bowl, and the pot. The Curry & Kale mussels are simple and tasty. The kale soaks up the curry flavours wonderfully. The Spicy Coconut version was the big winner. Coconut milk enhances the sweetness of the mussels while the chili flakes and chilis add a kick to balance it out. Winner, winner, mussel dinner.

I’ve put the recipes and a special mussel eating tip behind the jump so that my front page is manageable to scroll!

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